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In Search of Skilled Workers, Employers Like IBM, Texas Instruments, Exxon Mobil and Boeing Go to Middle School Summer Camp. Is Your Child a Candidate?

With skilled-labor shortages looming, some employers are moving to solve the problem by winning the hearts and minds of the young — the very young.

In an effort to tap future workers in middle school or earlier, big employers, including IBM, Texas Instruments, Exxon Mobil and Boeing, are increasing their backing of career-driven summer camps. The camps promote kids’ interest in fields ranging from engineering and aerospace to computer security. The efforts are yielding new opportunities for families, and insights into how to help kids explore promising careers.

The American Business Collaboration, a corporate partnership, will expand a middle-school science and technology camp program this summer to serve 500 kids at 10 camps in five U.S. cities and overseas, up from 300 campers at eight programs in 2005. The program is funded by IBM, Texas Instruments and Exxon Mobil. Texas Instruments is also expanding its support of middle- and high-school science and physics camps in Dallas and Plano, Texas. Boeing is exploring possible expansion of a popular summer science camp for first- through 12th-graders near Huntington Beach, Calif. AT&T backs three science and math camps in Detroit and Chicago, and Intel sponsors three science camps in Colorado and Oregon.

By Sue Shellenbarger

From The Wall Street Journal Online

Full Story: http://www.careerjournal.com/columnists/workfamily/20060224-workfamily.html?cjcontent=mail

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Girls learn that they can be engineers, too
Program designed to offer inside look at the profession

Ilana DeBare, Chronicle Staff Writer

The four girls twisted together several pieces of plastic pipe and some cloth to make a water filter. They filled it with gravel and sand, poured a vial of water into it and waited. And waited.

"Why do you think it’s taking so long?" asked Tracy Clinton, a civil engineer with Carollo Engineers in Walnut Creek.

"Because the water has to move through the sand and gravel?" asked Abby Lam, a 10th-grader from Oakland Technical High School.

Clinton nodded. "And…?" she continued.

"And the cloth!" Lam exclaimed.

Lam and the other girls were visiting Carollo’s suburban office Thursday as part of a quiet nationwide initiative to get more girls involved — or at least familiar with — the profession of engineering.

Full Story: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/02/24/BUGSVHDOR71.DTL&type=business

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